The document compares the sci-fi films Divergent and The Hunger Games. Both films have a female protagonist who demonstrates bravery - Tris in Divergent volunteers to jump from a building, while Katniss volunteers for the Hunger Games instead of her sister. Their societies are divided into factions/districts that isolate people from one another. The films also share superb cinematography with fluid camera movements during chase scenes, as well as futuristic settings like control systems and serums that alter perceptions. Overall, the document analyzes the similarities in characters, themes and techniques between the two popular dystopian films.

1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
THE DESIGN SCHOOL
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIRONMENT
NAME: JACQUELYN VANESSA TEE
STUDENT ID NO: 0320021
FILMS SELECTED:
1. DIVERGENT
2. THE HUNGER GAMES
WORD COUNT: 998 WORDS
ENGLISH 2 (ELG 30605)
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 1: COMPARE – CONTRAST ESSAY
LECTURER: CASSANDRA WIJESURIA
SUBMISSION DATE: APRIL 8th
, 2015

2. If moviegoers were asked a simple question, “Which Sci-Fi movie do you love
best?” they are most likely to spit out a diversity of replies as well as their
justification on why is it the best. Sci-fi, which is short for science fiction has been a
favorable movie genre by many movie junkies all over the world mainly because it is
futuristic and overwhelmingly impressive that it would leave most people at the edge
of their seat. For this essay, I will be comparing two blockbuster movies – Divergent
and The Hunger Games. In Divergent, the protagonist, Tris learns that she is a
divergent and unfortunately does not fit in any factions. After discovering that the
leader of the faction Erudite – Jeanine is plotting to destroy divergents because she
sees them as a threat, Tris along with her allies plots a revenge to go against her. On
the contrary, the movie The Hunger Games directed by Gary Ross projects the life of
16-year-old Katniss Everdeen from District 12, who volunteers herself for the 74th
Hunger Games along with another reaper, Peeta Mellark. Together, they both are
mentored under the only living victor from District 12, Mr. Haymitch Abernathy.
Katniss and Peeta being the only ones left alive in the end decided to defy the Capitol
by threatening to commit suicide but are later stopped by a voice from the speakers.
While different directors and authors separate these movies, needless to say they both
share various similarities.
One out of many similarities that Divergent and The Hunger Games possess is
that both films have a female protagonist that emerges as someone who conveys the
value – bravery. In the movie ‘Divergent’, Dauntless leader - Eric questions the new
Dauntless initiates on who would like to volunteer as the first jumper. The only way
for Dauntless initiates to enter Dauntless headquarters is by jumping from a high roof
into a dark hole that looks like it has an infinite depth. Tris who wanted to show what

3. she was made of voluntarily jumped down first and risked her life despite not
knowing what was underneath, whether there is something to support her when she
lands or not. As for the movie ‘The Hunger Games’, Katniss showed a sense of
bravery at the reaping. Initially, her younger sister, Primrose was chosen for reaping
to participate in the 74th
Hunger Games. But Katniss was extremely terrified that her
sister might not make it alive after the game and so without hesitation Katniss raised
her hand and screamed, “I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!” Thus, it clearly shows
that both protagonists are courageous and are able brave it out regardless of the
situation they are in.
Furthermore, the citizens for both movies are divided into groups. Both of
their societies live in a fictitious place whereby living in fear and in a dehumanizing
way is habitual. In Divergent, the society is divided into five factions, each dedicated
to the cultivation of a particular virtue. For instance, Candor is for the honest who are
straight-forwarded and speaks the truth, Abnegation is for the selfless who prioritizes
other people’s needs, Dauntless is for the brave who are ready to endure pain and face
danger, Amity is for those who emphasizes on peace, and Erudite is for the ones who
value knowledge and logic. However in the movie The Hunger Games, the society is
divided into 13 districts. District 1 to District 13 holds its own specific capability and
specialty from specializing luxury items, weapons, electronics, fishing, electric
power, transportation, lumber and paper, textiles, grain, livestock, agriculture, mining
as well as nuclear technology respectively. For both movies, members of different
divisions rarely converse with others who come from another division mainly because
they are all distinguished and isolated from each other.

4. Other than that, it is actually pretty evident that both movies share similar
superb cinematography. Cinematography plays a major role in all films and
filmmakers employ a number of techniques to help build specific emotions within the
audience. In the movie ‘Divergent’ and ‘The Hunger Games’, Alwin H. Kuchler and
Tom Stern directed the cinematography respectively. Based on my observation, these
two brilliant cinematographers did an exceptional job with the camera movement for
both movies. The camera seldom stops moving due to the many scenes of Tris
running in ‘Divergent’ and Katniss running in ‘The Hunger Games’ at high speed.
Those scenes were filmed so smoothly with fluidity that it successfully allowed an
observer to feel the adrenaline rush with their heart beating simultaneously with the
character at a rapid pace. Also, instead of making the characters follow the camera, it
was done the other way round. This non-stop sliding created the tension between the
characters and the viewers to bring out the liveliness of the moment, and that is what a
good movie is all about. In the words of Antoine Predock, “The body moves through
space every day, and in architecture in cities that can be orchestrated. Not in a
dictatorial fashion, but in a way of creating options, open-ended sort of personal
itineraries within a building. And I see that as akin to cinematography or
choreography, where episodic movement, episodic moments, occur in dance and
film.”
Moreover, both ‘Divergent’ and ‘The Hunger Games’ share the same futuristic
settings and surroundings. For ‘Divergent’, serums are used to induce illusions that
are known as simulations. These serums are injected with a syringe and serves as a
purpose to generate fear, wrench out truths, assess personality traits and enslave
minds while performing specific tests. This unique serum is futuristic due to the fact

5. that it does not exist in our present world, and because psychology would normally be
used as a solution to fulfill the same purpose of the serum. Whereas in ‘The Hunger
Games’, the game arena is surrounded by a strong force field and is also controlled by
The Gamemakers. The Gamemakers designed the arena with a force field at every
corner to prevent any reaper from breaking free. Not only that, they control the looks
of the scenery, the amount of animals to insert in the arena, the climate and weather in
the arena, and so on via a hi-tech control system. This system is something that our
present world’s technology sector have not achieve, thus it is considered futuristic
because of its ability to control an object indirectly via an electronic machine or
device.
In a nutshell, it is safe to say that science fiction put viewers in an anticipated
state and make them thrilled of the unknown. Although most movies that are under
the sci-fi genre are pictured in an imaginative world that is far from what reality looks
like, it is still ultimately about us. I think that is why most movie enthusiasts are really
drawn to these types of movies because it makes them picture themselves in a whole
new dimension, what more when watching it with 3-D glasses. As quoted by Steven
Spielberg, “Remember, science fiction’s always been the kind of first level alert to
think about things to come. It’s easier for an audience to take warnings from sci-fi
without feeling that we’re preaching to them. Every science-fiction movie I have ever
seen, any one that’s worth its weight in celluloid, warns us about things that
ultimately come true.”

6. References
1. Jacobson, N. (Producer), Ross, G. (Director). (2012). The Hunger Games
[Motion Picture]. United States: Color Force.
2. Fisher, L. Shabazian, P. Wick, D. (Producers). Burger, N. (Director). (2014).
Divergent [Motion Picture]. United States: Summit Entertainment.
3. Roth, V. (2011). Divergent. New York City, New York: Harper Collins
Children’s Book.
4. Collins, S. (2008). The Hunger Games. New York City, New York: Scholastic
Press.
5. Writing a Compare/Contrast Essay. Retrieved from
https://www.bcc.edu/clrc/files/wl/downloads/WritingaCompareContrastEssay.
pdf
6. Divergent Plot Summary. Retrieved from
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1840309/plotsummary
7. The Hunger Games Plot Summary. Retrieved from
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1392170/plotsummary
8. Divergent discussion. Retrieved from
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1106848-hunger-games-similarities-
mockingjay-spoilers
9. Divergent VS. Hunger Games. Retrieved from
http://www.teenink.com/reviews/all/article/559972/Divergent-VS-Hunger-
Games/
10. The Hunger Games Plot Overview. Retrieved by
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/the-hunger-games/summary.html
11. The Hunger Games. Retrieved by

7. http://thehungergames.wikia.com/wiki/The_Hunger_Games
12. Divergent Summary. Retrieved by
http://www.shmoop.com/divergent/summary.html
13. Divergent Cover and Summary. Retrieved from
http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/2010/09/divergent-cover-and-
summary.html
14. What is science-fiction and why is it so popular?. Retrieved by
http://s3.amazonaws.com/content.newsok.com/newsok/images/NIE/nie_docs/
ReadBeyondRealityLessonsFinal.pdf